This application relates generally to a gas turbine engine, and more particularly to a disk spacer for a rotor assembly of a gas turbine engine that provides anti-vortexing features.
A gas turbine engine channels airflow through its core along a desired flow path. Many sections of the gas turbine engine must be cooled to ensure reliable performance and efficiency. For example, the turbine section of the gas turbine engine may require cooling airflow from a compressor section of the gas turbine engine. Cooling airflow of this type may be provided by extracting bleed airflow from the core flow path of the compressor section.
Anti-vortex tubes are used to provide radial inflow of bleed airflow extracted from the core flow path of a compressor section. The anti-vortex tubes reduce vortices within the bleed airflow that reduce the radial inflow of the conditioned bleed airflow. The anti-vortex tubes act as an impeller to raise the pressure of the bleed airflow and prepare the bleed airflow to cool portions of the downstream sections of the gas turbine engine.
The anti-vortex tubes are typically mounted to one or more rotor disks of a rotor assembly and therefore increase the weight carrying load of such rotor disks. The increased weight of the rotor disks may reduce the fatigue life of such components.